The Toyota Mirai hydrogen fuel cell vehicle replaces vroom with quiet, but more importantly replaces stinky, noxious, gas-powered vehicular exhaust with water as its only emission. About one cup of water is produced for each mile a Mirai is driven.

A Honolulu Star-Advertiser test drive Wednesday involved an electric fob, but no key to insert or turn in an ignition, and barely a sound as the electric motor started.
All 151 horsepower offered by the sleek-bodied sedan was never quite fully pressed into service, though on a short stretch of roadway, the Mirai’s acceleration was put to a brief test. Its peppy response was positively received by the car’s four occupants, including Stan Osserman, hydrogen implementation coordinator for the state and fellow test-driver; Rick Ching, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Servco Pacific Inc.; Star-Advertiser photographer Dennis Oda; and a reporter.

It didn’t offer quite the same head-snapping G-forces as did a 2011 ride-along in a Lightning Green Tesla Roadster Sport (288 hp), but the Toyota Mirai is not trying to be a Tesla.

The popular Tesla Model S has from 329 to 691 horsepower, a range per charge of 208 to 270 miles, a base price of $69,900, and weight ranging from 4,647 to 4,830 pounds.“How much are you paying just to drag those batteries around?” Osserman asked rhetorically.

The Mirai’s 151 hp is derived from hydrogen-powered electricity, which eliminates the need for heavy batteries, so it weighs 4,078 pounds and its range is 312 miles. Its manufacturer’s suggested retail price is $57,500, but there is a $4,000 federal rebate.

The Mirai also is not trying to be a Prius. A Prius Plug-in has 89 horsepower, weighs 4,056 pounds, has a range of 11 miles if only electric power is used, and a base price of $29,990.
“Mirai” means “future” in Japanese, even though 20 years of Toyota’s history have included pioneering work on the vehicle. It is an illustration that the future takes time to build.
Available in Japan since 2014 and in California since October, when it becomes available in Hawaii late this year or in early 2017, its likely buyers will include “early adopters,” those interested in the clean energy movement, and those enamored with technology, said Ching.

Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles exist on Oahu, but they are fleet vehicles belonging to government entities that have their own fueling stations, which represents a hurdle that must be cleared prior to Mirai sales locally. A commercial fueling station must be established, and Servco is working on just such a facility, Ching said.

It isn’t just a matter of installing the hydrogen equivalent of pumps, though. A whole state Department of Agriculture measurement standards branch regulatory mechanism must be created for dispensing hydrogen in consistent qunatities, just like at the gas pump.

It’s easy to measure liquid, Osserman said, whereas gases can be compressed, and the gases’ volume can change with temperature, making consistent, regulated measurement at the consumer level more complicated.
Once built, the hydrogen fueling station will be powered by photovoltaic panels to keep the facility as energy self-sufficient as possible, said Ching. The target time frame for fueling station completion is the end of this summer.
Fueling a Mirai takes about five minutes versus hours to fully charge an electric vehicle.

In a nutshell, hydrogen is pumped into the Mirai’s fuel-cell storage tanks, which have a capacity of 11 pounds. When running, air enters the Mirai’s fuel stack through the front grilles, and combines with hydrogen to create electricity that powers the car’s electric motor and battery.

Despite the electric power under which the Mirai is propelled, it is not eligible for Electric Vehicle license plates the way the law is presently written. Efforts to amend the law to allow for EV licensing for hydrogen fuel cell vehicles encountered some “push-back” from current electric vehicle owners, Ching and Osserman said. EV owners didn’t want competition from vehicles that would take up parking spaces with charging stations they needed, but which the fuel cell vehicles did not. Efforts to amend the licensing law will continue this legislative session, Osserman said.

The Toyota Mirai hydrogen fuel cell vehicle replaces vroom with quiet, but more importantly replaces stinky, noxious, gas-powered vehicular exhaust with water as its only emission. About one cup of water is produced for each mile a Mirai is driven.

A Honolulu Star-Advertiser test drive Wednesday involved an electric fob, but no key to insert or turn in an ignition, and barely a sound as the electric motor started.
All 151 horsepower offered by the sleek-bodied sedan was never quite fully pressed into service, though on a short stretch of roadway, the Mirai’s acceleration was put to a brief test. Its peppy response was positively received by the car’s four occupants, including Stan Osserman, hydrogen implementation coordinator for the state and fellow test-driver; Rick Ching, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Servco Pacific Inc.; Star-Advertiser photographer Dennis Oda; and a reporter.

It didn’t offer quite the same head-snapping G-forces as did a 2011 ride-along in a Lightning Green Tesla Roadster Sport (288 hp), but the Toyota Mirai is not trying to be a Tesla.

The popular Tesla Model S has from 329 to 691 horsepower, a range per charge of 208 to 270 miles, a base price of $69,900, and weight ranging from 4,647 to 4,830 pounds.“How much are you paying just to drag those batteries around?” Osserman asked rhetorically.

The Mirai’s 151 hp is derived from hydrogen-powered electricity, which eliminates the need for heavy batteries, so it weighs 4,078 pounds and its range is 312 miles. Its manufacturer’s suggested retail price is $57,500, but there is a $4,000 federal rebate.

The Mirai also is not trying to be a Prius. A Prius Plug-in has 89 horsepower, weighs 4,056 pounds, has a range of 11 miles if only electric power is used, and a base price of $29,990.
“Mirai” means “future” in Japanese, even though 20 years of Toyota’s history have included pioneering work on the vehicle. It is an illustration that the future takes time to build.
Available in Japan since 2014 and in California since October, when it becomes available in Hawaii late this year or in early 2017, its likely buyers will include “early adopters,” those interested in the clean energy movement, and those enamored with technology, said Ching.

Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles exist on Oahu, but they are fleet vehicles belonging to government entities that have their own fueling stations, which represents a hurdle that must be cleared prior to Mirai sales locally. A commercial fueling station must be established, and Servco is working on just such a facility, Ching said.

It isn’t just a matter of installing the hydrogen equivalent of pumps, though. A whole state Department of Agriculture measurement standards branch regulatory mechanism must be created for dispensing hydrogen in consistent qunatities, just like at the gas pump.

It’s easy to measure liquid, Osserman said, whereas gases can be compressed, and the gases’ volume can change with temperature, making consistent, regulated measurement at the consumer level more complicated.
Once built, the hydrogen fueling station will be powered by photovoltaic panels to keep the facility as energy self-sufficient as possible, said Ching. The target time frame for fueling station completion is the end of this summer.
Fueling a Mirai takes about five minutes versus hours to fully charge an electric vehicle.

In a nutshell, hydrogen is pumped into the Mirai’s fuel-cell storage tanks, which have a capacity of 11 pounds. When running, air enters the Mirai’s fuel stack through the front grilles, and combines with hydrogen to create electricity that powers the car’s electric motor and battery.

Despite the electric power under which the Mirai is propelled, it is not eligible for Electric Vehicle license plates the way the law is presently written. Efforts to amend the law to allow for EV licensing for hydrogen fuel cell vehicles encountered some “push-back” from current electric vehicle owners, Ching and Osserman said. EV owners didn’t want competition from vehicles that would take up parking spaces with charging stations they needed, but which the fuel cell vehicles did not. Efforts to amend the licensing law will continue this legislative session, Osserman said.

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I agree that it should not be a considered a Electric Vehicle (EV). It is hard enough to get a EV charging stall now with all EVs. And not all the parking lots have installed EV stalls and charging stalls, despite having the law on the books. And don't forget the ICEs that still park in those stalls, despite signage.

I have a problem with hydrogen fuel cells because of the lack of the infrastructure to support them. Our State is also behind the times as far as adopting new technology. So I don't see hydrogen fueling stations popping up as quickly as they are needed. The beauty of plug-in EVs is that there are outlets in every home.

I agree that it should not be a considered a Electric Vehicle (EV). It is hard enough to get a EV charging stall now with all EVs. And not all the parking lots have installed EV stalls and charging stalls, despite having the law on the books. And don't forget the ICEs that still park in those stalls, despite signage.

I have a problem with hydrogen fuel cells because of the lack of the infrastructure to support them. Our State is also behind the times as far as adopting new technology. So I don't see hydrogen fueling stations popping up as quickly as they are needed. The beauty of plug-in EVs is that there are outlets in every home.

Click to expand...

+1. Unless Servco puts up these stations at their car lots, not sure how many stand-alone stations they can build considering infrastructure, land, and construction costs.

And don't forget the ICEs that still park in those stalls, despite signage.

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yep, had a lady the other day at the TJMax Charger ICE me. I EV'd her and plugged in, in front of her. and to show how mean I am, I waited a while before I allowed her out of the space. I just had to make sure she could read the sign and understand that it is not a cool thing to ICE people out of an EV spot.

I wonder how much it would cost to build your own Hydrogen "still." I can remember science class in high school when we used a battery to separate H2 and O in class. (test tube size).

The other thing they reported was that there is a bill requiring parking lots with more than 100 stalls to provide one EV stall. That's already law. The bill is to give the State the means to enforce the law.

Hawaiian Electric Co. is pushing for more electric vehicles to build the utility’s customer base and make way for additional rooftop solar.

“Hawaii should be the EV capital of the world,” said Alan Oshima, HECO president and CEO, in an editorial board meeting with the Honolulu Star-Advertiser on Tuesday. The high price of gasoline in the islands and the short distances, especially on Oahu, make Hawaii an ideal location for the expansion of electric vehicles.

HECO is working to increase EV adoption by installing electric vehicle charging stations and partnering with the city to add electric buses. Oshima said HECO is also in talks with the military to get more electric vehicles and charging stations on Hawaii bases.

HECO’s campaign for more EV adoption comes amid a rapid growth in sales of electric cars, albeit from a small base. In February there were 4,209 registered electric vehicles in the state, up 26 percent from a year ago.

More than 100 Hawaii residents lined up at a Tesla Motors office in Waipahu last week and paid $1,000 to reserve the company’s latest electric car. The Tesla Model 3 sedan, which will be available late 2017, starts at $35,000 before state and federal incentives.

“Telsa’s launch of the Model 3 validates that things are changing,” said Richard Wallsgrove, program director at Blue Planet Foundation. “I really feel like we’re at an inflection point.”

HECO predicts there will be 388,500 electric vehicles on Hawaii’s roads by 2045. There are about 1 million vehicles registered in Hawaii.

Increased use of EVs gives electrical utilities a new market and could help replace lost demand due to rooftop solar and greater energy efficiency.

“EVs will fundamentally change how electric utilities do business,” said Silver Spring Networks, a California smart-grid company, in a 2013 white paper. “Utilities taking an active role in planning and implementing an EV charging management solution will be well positioned to benefit from the coming massive change in transportation.”

HECO’s Oshima said, “Any additional revenues we get all boils down to customer savings. It reduces rates.” HECO’s rates go down as total electricity use increases.

The electrical utility included EV predictions in the 30-year power plans it submitted to state regulators last week. In its power supply plans, HECO said sales to power EVs could make up 14 percent of total customer power sales by 2045. Electric vehicles are currently 0.5 percent of the utility’s customer sales. The state has a goal of reaching 100 percent renewable electric power generation by 2045.

The other benefit for HECO is that EVs add more load during the day. Right now the load has decreased during the day because solar energy production is so high, Oshima said.

“If we can get more load, we can increase the amount of solar we can get on the grid, too,” Oshima said.

PLUGGING IN
4,209

Electric vehicles registered in state as of February

26.2%

Increase from a year ago

Source: Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism

HECO’s to-do list for EVs

>> Get city to use electric buses.

>> Get military bases to use electric vehicles.

>> Promote state as EV capital of the world.

>> Have 388,500 EVs on the road by 2045.

Source: HECO

Electricity and ground transportation combined make up more than half of the state’s dependence on oil, with 28 percent of the state’s oil use going to ground transportation and 28 percent going to electricity.

“There are so many synergies with EVs and getting to 100 percent renewables,” said Shelee Kimura, HECO vice president, corporate planning and business development. “If we have people charging in the day when the sun is available, it reduces the amount of storage you need, which is a cost. If more people charge and you are increasing sales, that reduces costs for everybody.”

Oshima said the electrical utility is applying for a federal grant along with the city to add electric buses to the city’s fleet.

“We would locate charging to match their bus requirements,” he said.

HECO is set to unveil its fifth utility-owned fast charging station for electric vehicles Thursday.

Oshima said the electrical utility is also looking into mobile charging options. Mobile charging would allow “more frequent psychological charging for people who want to be sure they are going to last through the day. … I would love to have an app like Uber where you find my car and you just charge me up and send me a message that I am charged so I don’t have to go looking around for the next charger or wait in line for 20 minutes for the person in front of me to complete their charge.”

Oshima said the number of EVs will grow because technology is improving.

“EV technology is getting greater and greater,” Oshima said. “Tesla Model 3 will have a 200-mile range, for example — which you don’t really need in Honolulu. The (Nissan) Leaf is perfectly adequate, except for the psychological (issues).”

Waimanalo resident Brian Malanaphy, 57, said he waited in line for an hour and a half to place his order for the Tesla Model 3 on Thursday.

Pearl City resident Lyle Waters, 45, said he got in line at 11:45 p.m. Wednesday at the Tesla Motors location in Waipahu and was the fifth in line.

“Hawaii is just the perfect environment for an electric vehicle,” Waters said. “We have the ability to have sunlight to provide power to our homes from (photovoltaic), and we don’t drive very far. … I’ve been a fan for a while. I have solar. We are just trying to be as efficient and clean as possible.”

wrong? Where?
FYI I think the charger that they mentioned is the one at the HECO building on Ward across from the Blasdell. Already open but not "announced" yet. $6.50 to charge. Chademo anyone? I bet papafox regrets returning his adapter...

In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king. And so it goes in Tucson, Arizona - 2nd largest city in the state with over 1M folks, and yet not an SC for 75 miles. As a result, the 3 ChaDeMo are the best game in town, which is sad as all 3 are throttled (by manufacture, no less) to 20kW. Beats 6.6kW J1772.

I was talking to a friend of mine last night who's part of the State's energy initiative division and she mentioned that there are about 10 Mirais on the island now. Told her I thought the infrastructure for the hydrogen stations was way too expensive for those cars to ever sell in mass numbers. Of course then she wanted me to convince her husband to get her a Tesla because of its safety features

need subscriber access but see details below. I think that's the club the Fiskar lady mentioned to me last time I saw her. Anyone going? Ed Kemper is the island drive guy. Not sure who the Tesla people are.

Details:
The Auto Lunch Bunch will meet Monday at noon at the Waikiki Yacht Club near the entrance to Ala Moana Park at 1599 Ala Moana Blvd.

The featured cars will be two Teslas. Jaris Pai and Tyler Helfrich, representatives of Tesla Hawaii, will talk about the cars.

RSVP for the lunch to Ed Kemper at 225-2965 or email him at [email protected]. The cost is $18.90.